


Back to the Beginning

by KyraNicole



Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-24
Updated: 2017-08-04
Packaged: 2018-11-18 12:22:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11290650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KyraNicole/pseuds/KyraNicole
Summary: Due to Santa and his stupid Creators Tucker finds himself thrown into the past at the start of Project Freelancer. Here he must decide if he should "fix" everything that went wrong and change everything that he knows and loves or let everything play out as it did. With the heart ache of a war that he wanted no part of, he must find away to survive once more.Not enough Tucker time-travel stories so I'm going to make my own... See how it goes.





	1. Chapter One

Tucker’s knees slammed to the rocky ground as Felix shoved him down. The hatred he had for the psychopath was unparalleled to anything else he has ever felt before. The knife wound in his side throbbed and he could feel the blood sluggishly flowing out making his bodysuit stick to it furthering the pain he felt. He was cornered against the rocky wall. The age old saying stuck between a rock and a hard place with nowhere to go filtered into his mind making him give a small snort. His sword hilt lay just beyond his grasp and he had no other weapons to use. In other words he was fucked.

“I must admit I didn’t think that you would survive as long as you did, Tucker. You continue to surprise me. I thought for sure you would have crumbled after I killed that fool Caboose.” He taunted “How many does that make now?” He questioned as he twirled the combat knife he used to kill Caboose and stabbed him. “Let’s see there was the pink one." He said ticking off a finger. "Then there was the one with that awful southern accent." He said ticking of yet another finger making Tucker wish for the thousand time that he had his sword on him. "The foolish boy who followed you wherever you went. Really what did Caboose ever do to make you keep him around only to get killed?" He looked over at Tucker and he knew that the next words the maniac was going to say would hurt him more than any other. "What was that freelancers name again? The one you had that ridicules not to mention highly transparent crush on? The one named after a state? I think that I shot him in the head, right?" He stopped his pacing and stared down at Tucker with that still wide manic grin on his face. “Washington, I think it was.” 

“I will kill you.” Tucker promised in a deadly voice. Completely unlike the voice he had when he first landed on the god forsaken planet. He had changed so much since then, lost far too many people to keep count, wasted so many times not listening to Wash, to not tell the other just how he felt until it had been far to little far to late. 

The reds and blues had been a part of the ridicules civil war that they had found themselves in for nearly six years and counting. With no end in sight and only their own words against a shadowy figure head that none of them had ever seen or heard about behind it all, it was no wonder the war still raged on. Tucker had to step up, had to be the solider that Wash knew he was capable of being. That it took for the dramatic fucker to die just made him all that more determined. He fought harder, trained harder, developed a skill set that made Carolina proud. 

“Is this the part where you say you won’t get away with this. Man, that is just too pathetic even for you” Felix said looking down at Tucker knife poised to strike.

“No this is the part where I say SHOTGUN!” Tucker screamed. Felix had time enough to look confused before Grif, Donut, and Lopez was soaring through the air on an old beat up Warthog, Polk music playing in the background. 

“How’s my bumper taste, asshole!” Grif shouted geelfully.

The impacted had Felix flying and Tucker, seeing his opportunity, took back his fallen sword and sliced Felix’s head off with one clean swish.  


“Ah man.” Grif said looking at the warped axle as he jumped out of the vehicle. “I can’t believe that actually worked.” Staring uncaring at the decapitated head before he nudged it to the side without a second glance.

” No estoy arreglando esto de nuevo.” Muttered Lopez as he followed suit

“You’re right, Lopez. Killing Felix is a huge achievement!” Donut cried out.

"¿Por qué no has aprendido español todavía?

Tucker stared disbelievingly at the corpse that was now Felix. “I….I can’t even….” He stumbled backward bloody hand pressed into the stone walls behind him leaving behind a bloody ghastly hand print on it, he gripped the hilt of his sword the tip of it digging into the ground as he used it to support himself. The war was far from over but this was a step in the right direction. He desperately needed it to be. He would make both sides see this for what it was. A step that would go such a long way to ending the stalemate that both sides had entered. 

'Hargrove was going to lose.' Tucker thought only a little hysterically.

But nothing was ever that simple for Tucker. He really should have learned after all the years of him being in the military, years of being looked down upon, used in a project unknowingly, and over all dismissed, that nothing good ever happened to him. If it did it didn’t last long. Case in point was the sudden rumbling of the ground beneath them. A crack began to form and Tucker had enough time to shove Grif then Donut backwards as hard as he could before the crack widened and deepened further and further. Separating the two of them from Tucker. Leaving Tucker with nowhere to go, again.

“The fuck is this shit!” He cried out as he looked across the ever-growing crack in the ground separating him from what remained of his friends. In the span of seconds it had grown so large that he couldn’t make it across even if he tried.  


"You have to find another way around!” Grif said frantically as he stood as close to the edge as he could. Tucker didn’t tell him that there wasn’t another way around. Just like Grif already knew there wasn’t one.  


He looked down at the sword in his hand and then back up at Grif before he threw it across watching as Grif's confusion morph into panic because he knew what it meant.

“Take it and win this bitch!” The last thing Tucker saw was Grif peering down after him refusing to look away from the last friend from the Blue team he had left.

Tucker had thought that this would have been the end for him. He was only a little ashamed that he felt relief at this. But the longer he was left falling the more confused he became and his heart sank because it didn't add up. With how long he had been falling he should have reached the bottom by now. There wasn't a bottom to land on and he had a sudden burst of clarity for what this all meant. He was about to get fucked over, again. Sure enough in just a few seconds later his prediction came true.

“Lavernius Tucker” A deep booming and very familiar voice called out.

“Santa? The fuck?” Out of everything his imagination could have came up with it had to be this? The sentient being had mysteriously disappeared several years ago and no one could find out where he had gone. Caboose had been broken hearted.

“Yes, it is I.”

“The hell is going on here?” He yelled out feeling only a little stupid for not having something to look at even if it was just a hologram.

“You have shown yourself to be a true warrior.” Was the only oh so very helpful response.

“But I thought that….” Tucker still couldn’t bring himself to say his friends name. Even just hearing his name being mentioned was difficult.

“He was not the only one who held that potential, Tucker. That you gave your life for you friends, that you freely and without any hesitation gave something that you held dear to you showed the man that you have become.”

“Yeah ok that’s all cool and shit but what does that have to do with me free falling in the darkness for the last how many ever-fucking hours!”

“My Creators were very wise and saw many different out comes. This was once such out come. They felt that should this happen things would need to be altered.” He stated in his sagely voice with just a hint of superiority to it.

“Meaning what exactly?” Tucker said with a growing sense of trepidation his irritation having taken a back sit.

“Meaning that you are going to go back to the beginning.” He declared sounding smug. 

“Back to the what now?” But he didn’t have time to hear an answer if there ever was going to be one before everything faded away.

 

Tucker went from free falling in absolute darkness to landing onto a grassy ground. His eye took a few minutes to adjust before he noticed that he was no longer alone.  


“Just who the hell are you?” Came a very familiar voice.  


Tucker just stood there wide eyed and moth agape as he tried to figure out just what the hell had happened.

“Ah fuckberries.” He muttered.


	2. Chapter 2

“Ah fuckberries.”

 

Tucker looked around his surroundings with confusion. He was in a tropical place rather than the barren rocky wasteland Chorus had become. With the vast amount of greener and the poorly hidden technology coming out from a tree he realized very quickly that he was in front of what could only be the very top-secret off sight headquarters of Project Freelancer. To make matter worse he was surrounded by the very group of said project with their very deadly weapons pointed right at him. Thinking quickly, he figured he had a fifty-fifty chance of them believing any shitty ass story he could come up with. He was never any good at lying.

“How the hell did you get here?” A very familiar voice said as she made a threatening step forward.

It was fucking Carolina. Of course it would be one of the very few people that he hadn’t lost in the war yet. He swallowed thickly. Fuck he was face to face with the damn She Devil herself. God how he missed the sound of her damn voice already. 

What the hell was he supposed to say to a bunch of highly trained happy trigger freelancers? To the ones that would eventually become one of his most trusted ally in a war that left them all wondering which side should they be on? Or to the ones that he helped kill. Could he face the one who held his guts in until Dr. Grey could fix it when Felix had sliced through him like he was made of butter? Could he manage to be objective? Could he stay clear headed enough not to sound like he was two seconds from falling apart? How would he even start a conversation?

“Hi, I’m from the future and I’ve come to tear down the organization on which you are meant to protect and serve? A project that leaves most of you dead, killed by your own teammate. Please don’t shoot me?” Fat chance that will work. So he uses his most obnoxious voice he can muster and lied his ass off.

“Well that’s a mighty fine question Missy.” He said thinking quickly. With the success of killing Felix still on his mind he thought ‘why not.’

“I’m a mercenary with a knack of getting myself into some very deep trouble apparently.” He said leaning causally against a tree in an attempt to keep himself from falling forward. Just how much blood had he lost? 

“Are we supposed to believe this?” Washington said in an incredulous voice.

The sheer amount of pain, guilt, and slight sense of hope nearly had Tucker reaching forward. The sound of Carolina’s voice had him crying out silently but it was Wash that hurt the most. He wanted nothing more than to pull Wash tightly to him and never let the other go. Instead he shifted his stance so as to not broadcast that he had a knife wound. Never, ever give your enemy leverage. He learned that particular lesson the hard way. Instead he gave out an irritated huff.

“Look I could give two wet shits on whether you believe me or not. Take me to whoever your commanding officer is I’ll only speak to them.”

Several meaningful exchanged looks later had Tucker stripped of his armor leaving him in his black under suit in an integration room. For the time being he was able to sit still and remain passive under the harsh glow of the overhead light giving him time to think. It seemed that he was placed back in time to where Project Freelancer was just in the starting phase of its experiment. Chances were that the Director was only now splitting apart Alpha. 

When someone finally did walk through the door Tucker bit the inside of his cheek until he tasted blood. Of all the people they could have sent it was fucking Wyoming. Didn’t he push him off a cliff or something?

"Right, here's the way this works. I ask you a question, you tell me an answer. One question, one answer. I don't get the answer I like, we've got a problem. And if we've got a problem, you've got a problem. That clear?" He said in his oh so polite British accent. Could he be any more unoriginal?

For several seconds silence reigned between them before Tucker began to laugh. He bent over in his chair and despite the wound in his side he just lost it. Chalk it up to the adrenalin crash that was about to hit him or the sheer absurdity of the situation that he had found himself in but he had to wipe the tears coursing down his face before he could get himself back under control.

“You have got to be joking me.” He gasped out once he was able to calm down. “Do you honestly think that you are going to intimidate me? Please I’ve seen much scarier things than you buddy. Let me tell you, you have nothing on that. Besides I’ve already told you all that I know.” 

Wyoming took a threatening step forward most likely about to introduce his fist to Tucker’s face just for the hell of it. He was a bastard like that if Tucker recalled correctly. He was interrupted though by the slow creek of the door.

The door opened once more and in walked the one person that started the whole thing. Logically speaking Tucker knew he would come face to face with the man eventually but he did realize just how much he wanted to kill him. If he killed the Director than none of the death, no of the destruction that had defined the three people he cared about more than anything else in the world would happen. History would be forever changed, rewritten to form something completely different. A new beginning Santa had called it. If he did that, however, then the man he knew and loved would be forever gone. Carolina would be changed and would never become the amazing person she would grow into. Church would very well not even come to be. Would it be worth it? Would he be able to walk away from all that he knew and cared for? There was another way Tucker might be able to change it. If he could get his hands on one of the cubes to the future could there be a chance that he could program the thing to take him right before Wash had been killed? Lord knows Simmons had spent enough time with the damn thing learning how it worked before he went M.I.A. Assumed dead for all accounts. Could he prevent more death from happening? Could he be selfish enough to only go to that point in time? Indecision wracked through him making it one of the hardest things he had ever had to decide on.

In the span of the several seconds these thoughts were coursing through his mind the Director was making his own assessment of him. Not that Tucker cared much what the man thought of him but it was still interesting to see the man try to intimidate him. It was working about as well as Wyoming’s attempt.

“I'm very interested in knowing how did you find this place?” The man eventually asked. 

Tucker wasn’t sure how to answer that tricky question. How did he manage to land near a very top-secret facility that no one should be aware existed? He barely understood it himself. Santa wasn’t very forthcoming with his explanation before he was thrust back in time.

“I’m just lucky I guess.”

The Director simply raised his eyebrow at him and waited.

“Look a job went bad real quick and it left me in a jam. I hitched a ride with someone and jumped off as soon as I could before I was…uhh.. found out. So here I am.” He said sweeping his arm in a grand gesture. 

“You called yourself a mercenary correct?”

“Yeah. What of it?” Tucker said not liking where this might lead. “How would you like a job?”

Yeah he definitely didn’t like where this would take him he was sure of it. Mercenaries where only contracted for one thing. If he was hired to kill one of the Freelancers he wasn’t sure he could go through with it. The mission that had created Sharkface also ran through his mind. 

“Sir?” Wyoming said sharply his head swinging to the Director's direction. Taking his eyes off Tucker for the first time.

“Quiet Agent. Would you like to be a part of something truly amazing? Something that will save the human race from future conflict?” The Director said. His own eyes never leaving Tucker.

Tucker’s heart nearly leaped into his throat. This could be the start of his so-called mission. What his final choice was it started with this. First he had to appear like he didn’t care.

“Depends Director.” He said slowly. “What are we talking here? Experimental shit I assume with the way everyone is acting but I’m more interested in the payout.”

“Trust me when I say the pay will be well worth it.” The Director said while leaning forward an eager glint in his eyes. “I believe we could benefit from a man of your particular skill set.”

God could the man be anymore sleazy? It made Tuckers skin crawl just being in the same room as him. He gave the appearance of thinking on it by taking a long pause before leaning back casually. “What the hell. Getting tired of killing people why not try out this smoke a dagger shit.” That was possibly the most truthful thing he said so far.

 

So that was how he found himself given a spartan room with one dresser, a poorly constructed bed, and a tiny closet with a few coat hangers. He still hadn’t been given his armor but he managed to get his hands on a gun, something he would need to address quickly, and a few medical supplies so it wasn’t a total loss. He even got a special code name. Met the newly minted Arizona.  
It was when he was bent nearly in half dreads hanging over one shoulder with a needle in hand about to stitch his wound up when the door opened up. Acting purely on instinct and not thinking on it he had his gun out and trained on the threat. It was a female with black hair shaved on the sides with the tops of it curling down around her forehead.

“Holy shit dude! Don’t shoot!” She cried out as she dropped his armor and threw her hands up in the air eyes wide. So much for being a bad ass freelancer Tucker thought.

“Are you stitching yourself up? You do know that there is a medical bay that can do that for you. Might be less painful too.”

He ignored her in favor of asking his own question. “What ridicules state name are you?” Tucker..no Arizona said keeping his gun still trained on the woman. He would need to get used to going by the name he had now been given.

“Names Connecticut but everyone just calls me C.T. Can you not point you gun at me now?” She said trying to keep her tone even.

Arizona lowered it slowly his eyes narrowing at her as she came further into the room. She was the one who had managed to figure out just how corrupt the Director was and was the one who started the destruction of the Project in the first place. He would need her help.

“Look I was just here to bring you your armor back. How did you even manage to get a weapon in the first place?” She asked picking up armor parts as she she walked into the room still keeping a close eye on him.

“It was surprisingly easy to do.” Arizona said with a frown on his face. “Might need someone to consider looking into that being that this is supposed to be some top secret hush hush shit.”

“Ah man Carolina is going to be so pissed about that.” She grumbled. 

Once she had gathered up all the armor she stood there looking expectantly at him. No doubt waiting on him to say something. 

"Care to tell me why you are still in here?" He said humoring her apparent need to talk to him. He had finished up with his side and would need to wrap it. Maybe he could get C.T do to it for him.

“So you and I are supposed to be partners now.” She said in what she must have thought was a commanding voice. "We need to get to know each other and figure out how to work with one another. There is a mission coming up that North and South are supposed to do together but the Director thinks that this will be a good way to see what you are capable of."

"The fact that we haven't ever worked together didn't occur to him? I mean if this is supposed to be an important mission, which it likely is, then why the hell is he doing this?"

C.T faltered at that as she dumped all of his armor into a corner. "The Director is always doing things that make no sense in the beginning but there is always a reason for it." 

Arizona just gave her an unimpressed look at her explanation. There was something going on that he was sure of. The man was insane and this was likely to be a test in which someone was supposed to fail. He just needed to figure out who it was that was being set up and prevent it from happening. For all he knew it was him that was supposed to fail. In any case this was going to be easier said than done when he knew absolutely nothing on any of them. He felt a migraine coming on.

“Partners.” Arizona said slowly. This could prove to be interesting and beneficial.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Couple of things to note here. Starters Wyoming's bit was taken straight from the episode Visiting Old Friends hence the unoriginal comment. Next is the OCC. There is going to be a great deal of it coming from Tucker and there is going to be a great deal of embellishing on the Freelancers themselves. The start of the story takes place six years in Tuckers mind and with a war leaving most of his teammates dead its going to effect my take on him. I'm going to refer to him by his state name from here on AU and all that. Comment and tell me what you think.


	3. Chapter 3

“Partners.”  


It’s was the silence that bothered him the most Arizona thought as he laid awake long after C.T had left. It pressed heavily against him, pinning him down to the bed in almost tangible way. He felt as if his chest would cave in as it pressed harder and harder demanding that he should be doing something rather than laying there on the lumpy, moldy smelling bed. One would think that he would have been given something a little nicer. The nagging thought that he had abandoned his comrades, his brothers in arms, the soldiers that looked to him for guidance, plagued him. The logistics of his presence in the past still left his head spinning as he tried to tell himself that there wasn’t anything that he could have done. But that excuse left a sour taste in his mouth and a restlessness deep in his bones. In the damning hush of silence, he was left wondering how he would find the stupid cube and return to where he felt he was needed the most. Had the cube even been created yet? Shit that would set him back if it wasn’t. For all that he was stressing over these thoughts he knew that it was illogical to do so. He didn’t have enough information on the current standings of the Project. Worse yet was his presence in the past to begin with. Could this be what ultimately changed things? Could he have already altered the future with him just being brought back in time? He wished he had Simmons with him once more if only to call him a nerd for having the answers he so desperately needed right this moment. All these thoughts circled around in his head over and over on a continuances loop that left him wide awake still. He found himself missing the earlier days of his military career where he wouldn’t need to come up with a plan of action, just winging it and hoping for the best. Always lucky enough to come out on top. (Bow chicka bow wow)

He wondered if this was how Wash had felt once he was finally freed from the clutches of Project Freelance? Doubt hounding him as he looked at everyone waiting for the moment that those around him would betray him? Keeping an eye out on the shadowy corners for the next attack? Wondering if in the next moment he would be the next to die. It left him unable to breathe, made him want to hold onto his gun even harder, keep his eyes open even longer than was healthy. He knew what it was. PTSD, soldiers heart, shell shock. Giving it a different name didn’t take away the fact that this was what he was now facing. His words to Wash echoing back at him from a time long pasted: “You’re a paranoid ex special ops guy who’s used to being betrayed on a weekly basis.” Yeah that pretty much summed up how he felt now. Growing irritated with his pity party he got up and threw on some gym shorts and top. Might as well be productive if all he was going to do was lay there.

Thirty minutes later he was still wandering the halls trying to find the gym.“Just how fucking big is this place.” He muttered. There had to be one somewhere, right? 

As luck would have it he managed to come across a slightly opened door a very familiar voice coming from it. So, he did what any paranoid solider would do, he eavesdropped. 

“This time you have gone too far, Director. We know nothing about this mercenary, as he claims to be, for all that we know he could actually be a working spy from Charon Industries instead of being apart of the UNSC itself.” 

“Price please, you are seeing shadows where there are none. Besides, he is far too much of an idiot for that to be the case.” The Director said.

‘Hey, I’m much smarter than I look asshole.’ Arizona thought resisting the urge to stick out his tongue if only because he knew that the man wouldn’t be able to see it.

“Nothing about him came up in any know database. Does that not concern you? He is virtually a ghost in the systems.”

“As a mercenary, he would have to be.” The Director said dismissively.

Arizona could very nearly hear the Counselor’s teeth grinding together. He had to agree with the man on this one. If he had been in this very situation he would have shot the unknown individual on the spot, no questions asked. There were to many questions with not enough answers for his sudden appearance. This was only made worse in the wake of a very delicate project that hadn’t even gotten off the ground yet no less.

“We will see just how well he does when he is pitted up against the Charon soldiers. See how he reacts to the news that they are a part of a resistances.”

‘That’s not even remotely true.’ Arizona thought with a grimace. They were just cannon fodder that the Director was going to use in a rouse for some made up 'Resistance'. Sharkface popped up in his mind once more. Arizona knew that it was now going to be an inevitable outcome. The plans were already in place it would seem. 

“Their loyalty will be put to the test. Some will pass while others will fail.” The Director said in a tone that left Arizona frowning.

‘Ha, knew there was a test.’ Arizona thought. 

“South is too much of a liability.” The Counselor said, switching topics. “She could jeopardize the entire operation. She doesn’t do well with team based missions, has problems falling orders, and doesn’t stop to think of how her action could affect her teammates. On top of this you are adding an unknown element as well by bringing in the mercenary, why?”

'Because he can. Because he wants to see how far he can push them. What would be the deciding factor on who would live to see the project all the way through.' Arizona thought with sudden clarity that left him somewhat shaken.

More to the point, Arizona thought it was telling that the Counselor had so far refused to call him by his designated name. It meant that he didn’t fully support the Director's decision on bringing him on board. Even more interesting was the fact that the Director seemed to completely ignore the concerns that the Counselor had. Concerns that held validity to them. Wasn’t he supposed to be the Director’s right hand man or some shit. This was just so convoluted and held too many unknown variables for Arizona’s liking. Something bigger was going on than what Wash and Carolina were led to believe. Just how corrupt was this man? In the wise words of Sarge: How deep did this rabbit hole go?

After several long minutes where it didn’t seem like any answer was going to be forthcoming Arizona decided to move on before he was caught. As luck would have it with a few more turns he did eventually find the gym and after a few warm up moves he got on a tread mill and began to run. 

“Dude those are some wicked looking scars!” C.T all but yelled out as she came walking into the gym hours later. 

Arizona had discarded his shirt long ago because it had begun to irate his nipples. He had sensitive nipples alright! 

Arizona just blinked at her for several minutes and when he didn’t immediately respond she continued her observation of him.

“I mean, I saw some of your scars when you were doing the whole stitching yourself up bit. Completely gross and unnecessary when we have a perfectly well stocked medical bay with medic's who are well trained. Another thing shouldn’t you be like I don’t know taking it easy since you just did that anyway? Anyhow, you’ve got like way more scars than I thought.” She said as she sat down on one of the weight benches. 

“How did you become a freelancer?” Arizona blurted out unable to stop himself.

“Umm because I’m good with a gun and I can kick some major ass?" 

It sounded more like a question than it did an answer so Arizona, for the sake of his sanity, said nothing as he picked up a water bottle and drank from it.

“So how did you get those scars anyway?” She asked still looking at him.

“You know how asking a girl about her age isn’t something you do?”

“Yeah.” She said drawing the word out.

“Don’t ask how I got my scars and I won’t ask how old you are.”

“Dude so not the same thing.” She pouted, she actually fucking pouted. 

“Another thing stop calling me dude.” Arizona said in irritation.

C.T was silent for so long that Arizona had begun to do some weight lifting before she spoke again.

“Arey.” She declared with a grin.

“What?” He asked unable to follow her line of thought. If she even had one to begin with he couldn't figure it out. Christ it was almost as bad as talking to.... It was just bad.

“That’s what I’ll call you, Arey.”

That was it. He was going to strangle her in her sleep and no one would have to know.


	4. Chapter Four

That was it. He was going to strangle her in her sleep and no one would have to know.

The rest of the morning was spent with the two of them alternating between reps on the weight bench and running on the treadmill before others slowly trickled their way into the gym. Distantly he could hear the others talking but he drowned it out with the sound of his feet hitting the rubber matting. One thing, however, did catch his attention. It was the sound of Wash’s voice. Of course, it would be. The wrenching pain had him stopping long enough to hear what Wash was saying.

“You know, when someone is running as hard and fast as Arizona is you have to ask yourself is he running to something or from something.”

“What’s the answer?” C.T asked.

“It’s both, always both.” With that unsettling truth Arizona picked up his things and left for the showers.

~~~  
As expected Arizona had found himself alone in the mess hall for breakfast. A slight reprieve from the chaos if not for the fact that the rest of the team kept shooting him looks every so often from the other end of the table far away from him. He felt as if he was in the middle of a horribly made lifetime movie but he really couldn’t muster up the emotions to care. He was slowly hating his life but as it turned out he was hating everyone else’s more. Christ, was he really considering saving these brats? The answer was given in the next few seconds because C.T had plopped herself right down next to him all smiles and completely clueless to what awaited her in the months to come. Damn it he was.

“You know that you’re supposed to be eating that and not mangling it with your fork, right?” She said in her obnoxious voice. He had a feeling that she only used that voice because she knew that it made his eyes twitch every time she did it.

Arizona stared down at his plate and sure enough he had only been pushing what was once a plate of eggs around, not really bothering to eat it.

“Why are you sitting next to me anyway?” He questioned her as he shoved the plate out of his way. “Isn’t this social suicide for you or something?”

“Well you are my partner and they are just a bunch of losers who are afraid of change.” She said as she shoveled grits into her mouth at a startling pace.

“I really just don’t have the energy to deal with this.” He complained as he started to get up fully intending on slinking off back into his room before C.T, in a rare display of quick reflexes that startled him, had grabbed his arm preventing him from walking off. 

“No, it’s been nearly a whole week since you’ve been here and you haven’t said a single word to anybody besides me and that’s only because I sought you out. So, stop being all grrr and sit the fuck down and listen to me.” She said in a huff. “If we are going to work on this next mission as a team then we all need to know what you are capable of.” She said with a firm look on her face that broker no argument.

“Did you really just say all grrr?” Arizona questioned a small smile on his lips.

“Yes, I did.” Without another word, she began dragging him to the other side of the table.

“Guys met Arey.” She proclaimed loudly as she made a swiping gesture towards him as if they didn't already know his stupid nickname she had given him already.

“Hi.” Arizona said feeling only slightly ridicules with the whole exchange.

Seven pair of eyes stared back at him all waiting, for what Arizona didn’t know but he was growing more and more irate by the second.

“Well this has been fun.” He said starting to turn around fully prepared to knock C.T over if he had to.

“Wait. Connie is right we need to get to know each other. So, I’m York. Just so you know C.T has a nickname as well. It's Connie” The man with gold and silver armor said with an easy-going smile. “This here is Carolina.” He said shoving her slightly forward making her frown heavily at him. “The twins North and South.” He pointed at each respectively. “Apparently, you have already met Wyoming.” He said with a strained look on his face when he pointed at the man.

“Pleasure to meet you again.” Wyoming said with a smile that showed far too many teeth holding out his hand to him.

‘Yeah I just bet you are.’ Arizona thought taking the proffered hand non-the less if only to appease C.T and get her off his back. 

"No hard feelings or anything right?" He said only half kidding.

"Clean slate." Wyoming said with a nod and only squeezed a little harder than what was warranted. 

“Washington is the dashing young man over there.” York said cheerfully. Arizona bobbed his head refusing to look the other in the eye. That largely went unnoticed by everyone save for C.T. The brat seemed to always notice everything that he did or didn’t do in this case. Perhaps that was how she had been able to uncover the atrocities that went on with the project. At any rate, she stood closest to him and was more able to see his reaction. Due to this she narrowed her eyes at him and Arizona had no doubt in his mind that she would later confront him on it.

“Last is Main.” York said give the man a look. Apparently, he wasn’t very social to begin with because the man just looked at him with a very unimpressed stare. Something that Arizona was very familiar with and had no qualms when it came to that look, having lost its meaning for him long ago. 

It took all his willpower to nod all nonchalantly at the man who would eventually kill off most of the very people in this room. Somehow, he had a feeling that he didn’t do so well at hiding this reaction from C.T as well. What he wanted to do was to shoot him in the head before the man had the chance to turn into the Meta and get his own shots in. He would also need to ensure that Carolina didn’t demand to be implanted with two A. I’s, make sure that Wash never received Epsilon because of that, and generally uncover everything that the Director would do insuring that C.T didn’t actually die as the outcome of her need to save the rest of her teammates. All he had to do to make all of this happen was to get them all to trust him. To turn on the very person who for all accounts gave them everything they had. No pressure, right? He could do this. He had pulled off things way harder than this in the past…Future? Everything always turned out fine in the end. Now that he had more experience and he knew how to handle stressful situations it would be a breeze. A walk in the park. He was so utterly fucked.


	5. Chapter Five

He was so fucked.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In the week that followed the rest of the team slowly got comfortable with his presence and even begun to talk to him. Granted the only ones that really made any sort of effort to seek him out were North, York, and Connie as he gleefully began to call her. Much to her annoyance and York’s mirth. 

So, a rhythm had been established and it seemed like he was getting along with most of the others. For now, at least. On top of all this Arizona was trying his best not to be alone in the same room as the Director. He really didn’t trust himself not to just shoot the damn bastard regardless of the fall out.

“So, you’re a mercenary. Got any cool stories that you could dazzle me with?” York said his arm curved around the back of his chair as he moved to look at Arizona.

“Well.” Arizona drawled out. “I suppose I do.” 

They were both sitting in the mess hall after everyone else had long since left for some mandatory training exercise that he and York apparently didn’t need to be a part of. Arizona didn’t feel like sitting in his room or going to the gym just yet and he wasn’t sure why York had stayed with him. He did, however, get the distinct impression that York was a man on a mission and was likely trying to gain some sort of information out of him. Regardless, Arizona felt somewhat grateful to have the others company. York had a sort of charm to him, an innate ability that drew everyone in without him even being aware of it. He somehow made everyone he was around feel more relaxed. A great trait to have when trying to interrogate someone. Oh, sure you could torture someone in an effort to gain any information that’s needed but there were risks that the one being tortured could be telling them only what they wanted to hear rendering any sort of Intel to be inaccurate. This in turn served to only give them false leads and a huge waste of time. Tucker was well acquainted with that kind of tactic. 

“Hmmm. Let’s see there was this one time where me and a few of my teammate were thrust forward in time, preventing us from dying courtesy of a large bomb.”

York sat in silence for a minute before he leaned back and laughed. The sound of it was so care free, something that Arizona had long since lost the ability to do. Even trying to mimic it usually sounded stilted and made others nervous around him. Because who couldn't laugh genuinely? It made him slightly envious and only further fueled his need to save them. He had failed one team he was going to try his damnedest to keep that carefree laugh from being snuffed out.

“You asked if I had any stories to share. You never said that they had to be true.” Arizona said. Although, every bit of it was true. It, in fact, did occur and had been the subject of great debates the last time he had attended a war meeting on Chorus. Due to Wyoming’s time distorting ability, they all jumped slightly forward in time. Prevent their untimely deaths and incidentally sending Church back in time. The suit had been badly damaged. Add that and the issue that the suit hadn't been fitted to go that far back in time left them all more than a little apprehensive about testing the theory. After all they only had the one suit and no one wanted to use it simply on that said theory. It didn't matter though because it wasn't a powered up armor that pushed him back in time.

It was in that short silence that Arizona’s thoughts came to a complete stop. He had the sudden sinking feeling that he inadvertently gave them the idea to put that sort of ability into practice. Damn it all to hell.

“Ok how about a real story this time.” York said looking at him expectedly.

“Well there was this one time where me and my team got a hold of a M808V Main Battle Tank. We named it Shelia"

"That's some seriously powerful equipment. How did you manage to get your hands on that?" York leaned forward with an intent look on his face.

"It's better than you don't know." Arizona said with a serious expression on his face that left no room to question further.

"Alright keep your secrets." York said with a glare.

"Do you want me to finish my story?"

"Yes please."

"Anyway a member of my team managed to kill off another one of my teammates."

"No shit?" York exclaimed. 

"No shit."

“Wow that’s some seriously fucked up thing to do.” York said with a low whistle. 

“He didn’t actually plan for that to happened he was just that dumb. He even earned the nickname team killing fucktard for the longest time. Any time after that we all steered clear of him when he had a weapon in his hands. Oddly enough he was really good with heavy machinery and had a real creative way of using and naming them though.”

“That is crazy man. How did you ever mange to trust him after that?”

“I didn't" Arizona said in a deadpanned voice. "Besides it furthered our own needs to be watchful and plan for any unexpected surprises that might pop up.”

"Man that's just cold."

"What I find that is just cold is that fact that you and I are the only ones sitting here without being a part of that special training that everyone else went off to. Do you know the reason why neither of us are a part of it?"

"Well it has something to do with the upcoming mission that is taking place. Rumor has it that all their suits are getting an upgrade." York said not at all worried or curious it would seem . 

"Alright, so that may explain why you aren't there but what about me? This is the same mission that I am supposed to be a part of so why aren't I getting the same equipment upgrade as the rest of them? I find it a little unsettling really. This is supposed to be some important mission where we need to steal some top-secret files in a well-guarded facility without being detected, right?

"You know that I've read the mission statement." York said disgruntled at his question.

"Ok you know what might be at stake yet here I am sitting with you telling you stories about my mysterious past without being outfitted with some new tech. I wonder why that is?” 

York had the gall to give him a sheepish look “I guess they figured you being such a bad ass and all that you didn’t need anything special to help you.” Arizona just gave him an unimpressed look at that explanation.

“Truth is that the Director always has a reason for everything he does.” York said his apathy was more than a little disconcerting for Arizona's liking.

Unsettling enough was the fact that C.T said the same thing to him once before. He was starting to think that the Director had brainwashed the lot of them. It would help explain why he wasn’t given any sort of high grade tech, The Director hadn’t had the time to get a hold of him and brain wash him like everyone else. Dipping a little too deep with the conspiracy theories but there really wasn’t another reason for their hive like mind. It was one thing to follow the orders of ones superior officer but to not question the methods or care about the consequences of their actions left Arizona shaken by what he was seeing. He had witnessed the aftermath of the project and saw that it was put to an end. But most of it had already been done for them. Just a few loose ends to tie up. Albeit the ending was more than a little nightmare inducing all on its own. 

“Yeah I’m sure that is the reason and not the fact that I’m the new guy and they don’t have any trust issues with handing out some of that fancy tech to me.” Arizona drawled out.

“Awe is this scary badass mercenary jealous that we get all the fun toys and you don’t?” Came North’s cheerful voice.

“Yeah that’s exactly it. I’m super jealous that you guys get all the fun toys and I’m left with just a regular suit of armor.” Arizona said sarcastically. “It has nothing to do with the fact that the higher ups think that these modifications are need for this mission that I’m supposed to be a part of, yet they don’t give me any special suit. They don’t seem to be all that concerned about me. Either that or they don’t think that I am deemed worthy enough to get said toys.”

There was a slight uncomfortable silence that followed his words as the rest of the team came trickling into the room. 

“That or they are just so confident in your abilities that you don’t need them.” C.T chirped up slinging an arm around his shoulders. 

Arizona resisted the urge to bat her hand away and instead just rolled his eyes. “That must be it. How could I have questioned our lustrous almighty lord and master.” Arizona drawled out just shy of any contempt in his voice.

The reality of it was that he was more than a little apprehensive about the mission. If he remembered what California said about the events that created the murderous Shark Face then this upcoming mission was what created him. This mission was going to be nothing short of a cluster fuck and several people were going to die. The opposing soldiers dying was of no real concern of his but more to the point was that he did have an outdated suit of armor even though his original suit was supposedly from the future. The only conclusion that he could come up with was that his own equipment had been swapped out and made to look like an older model. A great way of preventing any tricky questions that he wasn’t sure how to answer. He would give kudos to Santa if he could. No doubt he was the reason why he was not toting around in an outdated suit.

“Alright then we need to all go to the gun range to see just how good you are with a sniper rifle.” North said. “You and I are going to be providing ‘help from above’ to South and C.T. While they complete their objectives. So we need to know what you skill set looks like to plan accordingly.”

"That actually don't seem like a bad idea." York said. 

"Hey I have good ideas all the time."

"No you have what you think are good ideas that are actually really, really bad ones." South said with a cheeky grin on her face.

Arizona shrugged his shoulder in indifference and stood up. “Seems like a good plan to me.”

He, of course, had been to the range before and showed off his impressive shooting skills with a hand gun but as of yet he hadn’t been able to get his hands on a sniper rifle. Much to his surprise he was looking forward to it.

Once in the gun room North held onto a rifle seemingly a little reluctant to let Arizona use it. Amusing the other with his hesitation, Arizona just waited him out pretending that he wasn't at all excited about holding a sniper rifle. 

“She’s a little temperamental so be gentle with her.” Arizona would have made a comment on his wording but he realized that North was completely serious and was highly attached to the gun. So he stayed silent.

A series of memories flashed through his head like a reel on a projector. Causing him to stumble slightly with the powerful onslaught of them.

_“How come I never get the fucking sniper rifle?” Tucker complained petulantly._

_“Hey Tucker, you want to trade with me?” Tex said shaking the sniper rifle enticingly at him in an effort to trick him into giving her the sword._

_“Nah I’m good.” He said slicing the sword in the air._

“Hey, Arizona you in there?” C.T said waving her hand in his face a look of concern on her pretty face.

Arizona chocked down the painful lump that had formed in the back of his throat. “Yeah I’m good just thinking too hard is all.”

“What a little scared that you won’t be able to beat my score?” North said a smug look on his face.

“Just give me the damn thing.” Arizona said taking his irritation of the painful memories out on North.

“Alright Arey show them how good you really are.” C.T said jumping a little acting slightly childish in his mind.

He just shook his head at her antics. Lying flat on his stomach with a state of the art sniper rifle in his hands trying in his hardest not to drool all over the thing. 

“Bow chicka bow wow.” Arizona muttered at C. T’s words to himself before he lined up the shot. He took a deep breath in before slowly releasing it, and squeezed the trigger. The sound of the gun going off seemed to echo in the gun range as everyone stood behind the glass not saying a word. With a frown Arizona shoved himself up and took the ear muff off to look at everyone. “Do I need to do it again?” He said in honest confusion.

“Hell no you don’t.” Wash said with admiration evident in his voice. “You out shot North by three hundred yards. Something that I didn’t think was possible.”

“It wasn’t all the good.” Arizona muttered. “Could have done better. North wasn’t kidding when he said that it was temperamental. It curves to the left. Why don’t you get it adjusted?”

“Because our dad gave it to him.” South said as she and North entered the gun rage to stand in front of him. “You wouldn’t be able to tell but my bro is the sentimental type she said bumping shoulder with North. 

North only held out his hands in a silent demand for his gun back with a slight pink tinge to his cheeks. Arizona didn't say anything just handed back the gun letting the other save some of his pride by not making his verbally ask for his gun.

“So what if you are a good shot. That doesn’t mean squat if you can’t fight.” Carolina said as she folded her hands over her chest looking down at him from behind the observation glass. She hadn’t left the room like everyone else. “So can you or not?” Another telling sign that she didn’t consider him a part of the team. Her mocking tone only furthered her point. The rest of the team wouldn’t say it but she was the defacto leader of them.

Arizona knew that he would have to prove himself to her eventually. His own words weren’t shit if he couldn’t back them up but Carolina’s doubtful look on her face stung even though it shouldn’t. It didn’t help the he had always been on the lean side even if he tried to bulk up. Giving him a smaller frame than most other guys around him. That was both a blessing and a curse for him. It made his enemies underestimate him but also caused his own team to doubt him. He had to remind himself that this wasn’t his Carolina. It was the younger more insecure Carolina that felt the need that she had to prove to everyone that she was the best, that no one could beat her in anything. It was harder for him simply because it was Carolina who was doubting him. She hadn’t done that in a long time, in fact she had been impressed at his improvement and even went so far as to say he was nearly as good as she was. Only because no one was as good as she was in her eyes. Something that he both admired at her own self confidence and the source of a great deal of annoyance.

“Fight me.” He stated as he looked at her through the glass.

Everyone looked at him in astonishment. Silence reigned for a few minutes.

“Alright.”

“There is no way you can beat her.” North said looking at him.

“Let’s see.” Arizona said with an unconcerned look. He did however gave C.T a harsh glare once everyone had filed out of the room. She tightened her shoulders and narrowed her eyes at him. Her minding analyzing his moves. Arizona didn’t care too much what she thought of his actions. He would let her come to her own conclusion.

The fighting room was impressive to say the least. It was top notch and had everything that anyone would need in a fight. Arizona had already scanned it looking for things that would help him as Carolina stood watching him.

“Ready?” Carolina said her stance already in place.

“Only if you are Missy.” He said calling her the same name as he did when she first met him taunting her.

“You are dead.” She rushed out at him and the fight was on.

Anyone who was experienced in fighting knew that when it came down to it there were never any rules. It was the enemy or them and one miss step would lead to death. But Carolina almost made it look like an art form. She was graceful and always aware of her surrounding and knew the risk she took every time she entered a battle, confident enough that she would always come out on top. 

“He is one of the most idiotic man I’ve ever met.” C.T said as she and the rest of the team stood in another observation room with only a plate of glass between them.

“I’ll say. He has nothing on her.” Wash said. “Although he has held his own so far. Longer than any of us have.” Looking down at the timer with an impressed look.

C.T kept her mouth shut though on the real reason she thought that of him. She wasn’t sure what he was trying to prove by challenging Carolina. It was more than just a simple dick waving contest that no doubt was what everyone else thought. With Arizona, there seemed to always be an ulterior motive with anything that he did. He always had some type of plan in place or reason behind why he did things that always left her guessing. She prided herself in finding the truth about anything or anyone. Seeing even the most minute details that everyone else missed. That the Director chose to use North and South for the original mission had baffled her. She was better at infiltration and had the skills that South lacked to complete the mission successfully. Ever since Arizona had arrived she had only begun to question the Directors motives even more. Leaving her doubting every move that the man made more so now than she had just several weeks prior. It was all the damn Mercenary’s fault. 

It didn’t take Carolina long to figure out that Arizona was favoring his left side and used that to her advantage. When the opening appeared, she punched him in that very spot, sending the other flying through the air landing painfully on his back. The fight ended in the way that everyone had expected it would with Carolina on top. Her fist mere inches away from the fallen man’s face. Both were left panting and Arizona slowly put his hands up. 

“I surrender to the Queen of all fighters.” He said still a little breathless. “I am no longer fit to oppose you.” 

In a rare display of respect Carolina held out her hand to the fallen man. “Don’t forget it either.” She said with a small nod of approval. “You favor your left side might want to look into that.” She said as they both made their way to the door.

“Sure thing Missy.” Carolina punched him in the shoulder causing him to stumble sideways to keep from falling. He only gave a small huff of laughter at her antics.

“Well done, Arizona.” The Director’s voice sounded through the intercoms. This time C.T didn’t think she was the only one to notice the difference in the man’s posture at the sound of the Director’s voice. Carolina stood closest to him but she only gave him a sideways glance not saying anything about it. He seemed to be getting a lot of these glances. Perhaps they weren't as hive minded as he thought. Either that or this was just another result in that same state of mind. Jesus he was giving his self a migraine trying to sort it out.  
~~~~~~~  
“What the ever-loving fuck was that about!” C.T shouted as soon as she stormed into Arizona’s room. Once again, she was met with the sight of Arizona hunched over looking at the stab wound on his side.

“Help me rewrap it?” Was his out of breath reply. “It would be a lot easier with a second pair of hands.” He said wagging his eyebrows at her.

“You are insane. Utterly and completely insane.” C.T said as she sat down next to him taking over with dressing his wound.

“Yeah well at least I didn’t point my gun at you this time.” He gave out a small grunt of pain as C.T tugged too tightly on the ends of the wrap at his comment.

“Besides the point.” Once she finished she looked at him with a thoughtful look on her face. “You would have won if you didn’t have this wound on your side, wouldn’t you? Which by the way will never heal if you keep this shit up.”

“Eh who’s to say if I would have won or not. And in your own words, that’s beside the point.”

“And just what was the point in all of this?”

“Carolina is the leader of your team whether it is recognized by the rest of you or not. She knows all the team’s strengths and weakness. Her own weakness is that she has an over inflated ego and needs to prove that she is better than everyone else. This fight helped her both see what I am capable of and gave her the knowledge that she is still the best solider in the team. It made her like me more that she won the fight.”

“This was all about making her like you better?” C.T said with wide eyes.

“A little bit of blood and a bruised pride isn’t that big of a price to pay to get her to like me. She’s a very powerful and talented individual with a lot of potential in her.”

“That so.” C.T said.

“Careful there one might think you would be jealous of my opinion of her.”

“I have no clue what you are going on about.” She said. “I don’t care what you think about anyone.”

“You have nothing to worry about.” Arizona said throwing an arm around her much like the same way as she did earlier. “You are after all my partner.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My classes are taking up a lot of my time so I wont be able to up date at a regular pace. Any comments or suggestions on my writing style or over all plot structure is welcomed.


	6. Chapter Six

"You are after all my partner."  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Things with C.T seemed to be different after he had that conversation with her. Not in a bad way, it seemed she was more mature than before. Not that he minded the change but it did make Arizona wander what it was that brought it about. The rest of the team similarly went through the same process in regards to his presence. Well, mostly everyone. Wyoming was still a complete ass to him in his oh so refined British accent of his. Main was someone that Arizona completely refused to both work with or turn his back on the man. It just couldn’t let go of the paranoia he held for the other. 

It was the night of the big mission that C.T came up to Arizona her helmet tucked under one arm with a look on her face that he didn’t like. It looked almost like doubt. Not something that she should be thinking when a mission of this caliber is about to take place.

“Keep an eye out for South for me, will you?”

“I’m supposed to be your back up not South’s. Besides she has her brother to look after her after all.” Arizona said with a frown.

“I know that but she isn’t the….” She stumbled trying to find the right words to say to him. “Look she will complete her mission that I’ve no doubt about and North will be able to back her up. The problem is that you two are supposed to back us up if something goes wrong.”

“You think that something is going to go wrong and you think that it’s going to be because of South.” Arizona summarized for her.

“Yes. Yes I do and there isn’t a damn thing we can do about it. Honestly, I would rather have Carolina and Main. Don’t give me that look. You’re going to have to explain to me why you don’t like him one of these days.”

Arizona clenched his jaw at the mention of the man but said nothing about her words. “Be that as it may I will try my best to watch out for her but as I’ve stated you are my partner and I’m supposed to watch your back.” With his words, he hoped that he had distracted her from trying to glean any more information from him or theorize his reactions towards Maine.

“That’s all I ask.” C.T said in a somber tone before slamming her helmet into place and walking on to the ship.

“This is going to be so much fun.” Arizona mutter out as he followed her.

“So, our mission is to infiltrate Bjørndal Cryogenics Research Facility where North and South are to retrieve data. C.T and Arizona mission is a little more complex the two of you. They are going to steal plans and possibly a prototype that will hinder our success on our project.” Carolina said as she started up the ship. 

“Yeah, yeah we know our missions.” South said obnoxiously. 

“So much fun.” Arizona retreated to himself as they took off.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The cloud coverage that helped conceal North’s position was causing difficulties for the man’s ability to keep South in his line of sight. Thermal was also another interference for both snipers despite Arizona’s own spot inside of an abandoned building on the opposite side from North. The freezing terrain working against them. Looking through his scope Arizona could see that C.T was very effective at evading enemy soldier and needed very little help from him as he followed her progress.

While South’s mission was straight forward and in a cliché to end all cliché’s, it leads her up to the top of the building. C.T’s was slightly more difficult as it leads her further into the building. The great glass window panes helped Arizona but it still wasn’t an ideal strategy. Damn the Director. 

The mission was harrowing to say the least as Arizona followed her progression down the stories through his scope, giving her directions as she moved from floor to floor.

“Found it. That was easy enough” C.T said a little out of breath. “This is what all the fuss is about?” She asked as she stared down at the model encased in glass.

“It’s going to have alarms built into it.” Arizona cautioned.

“I know what I’m doing, jackass.”

Arizona said nothing else as he watched her disable the alarms with ease and pulled the gun out.

“I don’t understand. All this for a gun? It’s not even all that big either.”

“Come on C.T, that’s just begging to be commented on.”

“What?” She said in confusion as she stashed the gun along with the blueprints to it in her bag.

“That’s what she said.” He said with a smirk on his face.

“Did you really just say that?” C.T said incredulously.

“Oh, come on it was funny.”

“Not even in the slightest.” C.T said with a huff as she took off the way she came.

“C.T I need for you to duck down on my mark.” Arizona whispered out through the coms to her. He followed a solider as he attempted to sneak up on C. T’s back. “Now C.T.” He hissed out. His partner dropped down as she was told and Arizona pulled the trigger from his rifle and took out the enemy. C.T grabbed the body before he fell to the ground causing noise. 

“Show off.” She muttered out to him as she got up and continued onward.

“Just having your six is all.” Arizona said with humor lacing his voice. 

“Ok. Tell that to North when you see him next. I could have taken him out if you just warned me instead of shooting off on your gun. Bit reckless.”

“Eh the machinery from the warehouse masked my shot.”

“Only if you had timed it right, what if you didn’t?” She huffed out as she took another left down the halls.

“Doubting my abilities, now are you?” Arizona teased.

“I would never do such a thing.” C.T replied just a tad thick on the sarcasm. 

“Hmmph. Take another left at the next corner.”

“ Why? That’s not part of the route I’m supposed to take.” C.T said with a frown.

“Just trust me ok.”

“Fine.”

Not even a few minutes after C.T followed his directions did South’s voice filter through both channels.

“Ah shit, it’s about to get loud.” South shouted out just as the alarms went off.

“Damn it, South.” Arizona complained harshly as he quickly packed up his gear. He looked out the open window before pulling out a grappling hook. “I hate doing this shit.” He grumped out before he lined up his shot and pulling the trigger. 

The shattered glass made loud crunching noises as Arizona skidded to a halt just shy of colliding into C.T.

“Did you just?” She gaped out at him unable to finish her question as she gunned down another solider that came up behind them.

““I don’t have all your fancy gear so I had to go old school with it. Be in awe later run now.” Arizona panted out as they both took off.

“Utterly insane!” She quipped out at him.

The ensuing chaos that surrounded them as they both broke through the last door leading up to the rooftop had Arizona pausing for a few minutes. The amount of me that the four of them were now up against was slightly staggering and more than a little intimidating. He had faced off worse odds so this was cake...

“Oh, come on!” South shouted out as they were surrounded.

“Attention assholes, stand down you're surrounded. Give us the data file now!” A man shouted out over an intercom. 

“We got this, right?” Arizona said staring out at all the men.

“We so got this.” C.T said and the firefight began.

There comes a time in a war-zone where a person is reduced to actions and reactions. Pulling the trigger at the enemy in front of them, distancing themselves from what was going on. Arizona had been through his fair amount of firefights over the many years and found a way to retreat from the on goings around him. The sounds in his head weren’t all that different one would hear from a radio, all static a rushing sound that roared through his ears. It was almost peaceful in a way.

“AREY!” C.T’s frantic voice managed to pull him from that warm place in his head leaving him to blink as he held his wavering gun at her face.

“We need to go, the Pelican is here.” She said gently as she placed her hand on his wrist lowering the gun.

“Right.” Arizona chocked out as he followed her towards the ship.

C.T didn’t say anything to him as they both strapped themselves into their seats. Instead she gripped the bag of stolen goods tightly to her, her mind racing on what the gun meant and why it was so vital that they needed to steal it. These thoughts left her mind when Carolina made a sharp jerk to the left with the controls. It didn't take along for the enemies to gather up enough soldiers to fly their own ship and soon came after them.

“We’ve got in coming!” Carolina screamed back as the ship careened sharply to the left again.

“Son of a bitch! At this rate will be gunned down for sure.” North looked over at his sister and with a muttered apology he slammed his fist into her stomach knocking her out before strapping her in the seat, scrambling up the hatch and disappearing out of it.

“The hell is he doing?” Arizona shouted out at C.T.

“Something stupid.” Was her slightly terrified voice.

“You still have some of those fancy grenades of yours?” Arizona asked.

“I do.”

“Give them to me.” He said holding his hand out at her. Reluctantly she handed over said weapons. 

“What are you going to do?” She cried out as he vaulted out of his seat and followed North.

“Something stupid.” 

The slamming of the hatch oddly sounded louder to C.T than it should as she stared at the closed door long after Arizona left.

“Arey what the fuck are you doing up here?” North cried out as he activated his impressive shield. 

“This is so cool!” Arizona said ignoring North for the moment. Glad that he had the dome, that would make things a lot easier for him. He looked at the advancing ship calculating the distance he would need.

“How long can you hold that shield up?” 

“As long as you need me to.” North said in a determined voice.

“Take it down.”

“Do what?”

“What is it with all of you questioning me?” Arizona said in frustration. “Look I have a plan.”

“Is it a bad one?”

“Probably.” Arizona said showing North the grenades in his hands.

“Don’t get us killed.”

“I don’t plan on it.”

When North dropped his shield, the enemy throttled their own ship coming in closer, just like Arizona predicted that they would. 

“Alright on my mark I want you to throw it back up. Carolina, we have another in coming!” Arizona warned here.

The ship took another sharp turn and Arizona eyed the new course. He took a small step backwards before hurling the now active grenade through the air hitting the wing of the ship. “Now.” He shouted out but it wasn’t necessary as North did it without prompting. The ship went down and the blast of it knocked both off their feet. For one terrifying moment Arizona thought that he was going to lose his grip the held him to the ship before a hand reached down and helped him up.

“Thanks man.” He panted out as he made for the door.

“Let’s not do that again.” North said following him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once they had all made it back to base and the data and weapon were taken from them a screen came up with a list of rankings.

“Fuck is this shit?” Arizona said eyeing the obvious score board.

“The objective was to infiltrate the building without detection.” The Director stated before dismissing them.

That really wasn’t what he had meant when the ranks were displayed. The tension of the revealing was palpable as the remaining member stared at it. South punched the wall, destroying something as she did so, before pushing passed her brother. Arizona didn’t have time for whatever bullshit that was all about and instead took off down the hall. Once he made it to the room he began tearing off his suit. His desperation made his fingers clumsy and his eyes blurred with his tears of frustration. He couldn’t manage to unhinge the lock that kept his breastplate on and was give out small sounds of panic, his breath coming in sobbing gasps.

“Arey.” It was C. T’s soft voice again as she reached out and unlocked it for him. “I’ve got you, it’s going to be ok now. You have to calm down.” She lowered them both onto their knees as she kept whispering those same words over and over.

“I can’t.” He managed to say clinging onto her own bare arm, leaving vivid bruises at his tight grip.

This kiss stopped everything for Arizona as his eyes widen in surprise. She pulled back slightly her hand cupping his face wiping the tears from it. "Yes you can."

“C. T.” He warned when she leaned in for another kiss.

“It’s ok.” She repeated.

After that it was clash of teeth and tongue as they both tried to dominate the kiss. Arizona didn’t relent though and after a few seconds more he had her pinned to the ground, his amour scattered around them.

“Do you know what you are doing?” He whispered against C. T’s bruised lips, eyes glazed over as he kept himself upright not quit touching her yet.

“I do.” She panted out.

“Good.”

After that there weren’t any more words exchanged between the two of them. Arizona pulled the woman underneath him closer and began shedding her cloths leaving bloody bite marks down her neck and collar bone. C.T arched into his heated grip and left her own bloody nail marks down his back and arms.

When Arizona sealed his lips over her core, C.T gave a cry of delight as she tugged onto his dreads thighs quivering as she tried to keep herself still at his menstruation. With clever fingers and talented tongue, he had her screaming her release soon after.

“Beautiful.” He murmured as he pulled away slightly. The flush that spread across her face had very little to do with her orgasm and more to do with his words.

In retaliation to his words, she lunged out at him taking him by surprise. Straddling his waist, she gave him a smug smile at his stunned look.

“What are you…” His words were lost when she skimmed her fingers across his length causing him to arch upwards. Grabbing him she gave no warning as she sank down on him. The groan that left his lips sounded almost like pain as he griped her hips attempting to gain his bearings. Apparently, she didn’t want that and nearly pulled herself off him before slamming down again. After the third time of her doing this, he lunged forward gripping the back of her neck, stilling her before shoving deep inside of her. In turn C.T bite down the cord of muscles on his neck. 

There was no loved involved, no sweet words whispered out. Just a rush of raw movements and strangled cries filled with both pain and pleasure. It was all encompassing and everything Arizona needed to make himself feel again. 

It was several long minutes where both of them just laid there on the carpeted floor, neither one of them felt the need to get up, did Arizona speak up.

“Thank you.” 

“What are partners for?”


	7. Chapter seven

“What are partners for?”  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
When morning came Arizona woke with C.T still sleeping by his side and gave a small frown at this. He hadn’t meant to allow this to happen. Worse yet was that she stayed with him. A large misjudgment on his part. ‘When did I start thinking that sleeping with a beautiful woman was a bad thing?’ Arizona mused as he got up for his morning workout.  


It was about the time that he was eating breakfast when he was cornered by Wash. Who promptly sat down next to him an expectant look on his face. Arizona had excepted something like this would happen he just failed to take into consideration that it would be Wash to ambush him. It was laughable to think that he would be able to just remain friends with the other. Maybe the distraction C.T provided him with would help him.

“So, I heard a certain partner of yours spent the night with you.” He said wagging his eyebrows at Arizona. “Anything you would like to share?”

Arizona peered up at the much larger frame of Wash and gave a sultry grin at him before leaning forward brushing his lips against the other man’s ear.

“Why Wash I never kiss and tell.” He purred out at him before he leaned back and got up not bothering to look behind him at the stunned look on Wash’s face. A pang in his heart had him walking just a tad faster than he would like to have done. Even so far back in time Wash still smelled the same. His personality and his looks might be different but his scent was something that hadn’t changed it would seem.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
“What they hell did you say to Wash this morning Arizona?” C.T said grinning at him as she handed him a bottled water. They were both at the shooting range. Hitting stationary targets was starting to become boring for Arizona as he was slowly growing more restless the longer time went by. Arizona had yet to find anything on the Cubes to the Future and he was slowly coming to terms with that not being an option for him. He wasn’t so sure that if he had said option that he would stay. He felt slightly guilt for wanting to have that as an option but it would seem that nothing would go his way. Not like it ever had before.

“Why do you ask?”

“Because he hasn’t been able to concentrate on anything ever since you talked to him. So, what was it.” She said with a huff when he didn’t answer her.

“Just gave him some food for thought is all.”

“Now that’s just terrifying.” She said with a grin.

“C.T about last night.” He started to say.

“Please spare me the whole it meant nothing speech for me Arizona. We were both just letting off some steam in a very pleasurable manner.”

He gave her a grin as she walked out of the practice room completely missing the concerned look she gave him. He took a deep breath and went back to shooting his flimsy sheet of paper. His relief was palpable at her dismissive attitude on the matter. In a much better mood he was able to lose himself in the repetitive motion of shooting. A tap on his shoulder a few minutes later had him looking back at Carolina a disgruntle look on his face at the interruption.

“We need to talk.”

“Oh no this sounds serious. Whatever did I do to get called into the principal’s office?”

“You know what you did.”

“Fine.” He said giving out an over dramatic sigh before putting his gun away.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Arizona leaned back in the chair as he faced off with Carolina who was pacing back and forth making it her hundredth cycle. He had found that when the woman was doing this she was trying to puzzle out a problem and it was best to stay silent. But if things continued like this he was going to walk out. Seriously a whole hour and she still hadn’t told him why she wanted him to meet her in an office room, just the two of them at that. 

“Man, I must be doing something right if I managed to get you in a room all by ourselves.” He said having finally grown tired of her pacing.

She abruptly stopped to look at him. Her blonde hair shadowing her blue eyes but he could feel her disapproval as she stared at him.

“That was highly unprofessional of the both of you.” 

“Did you just bring me here to lecture me?”

“No. I brought you here because of your actions leading up to your…. rendezvous with C.T.”

“Rendezvous huh. You make it sound like we were colluding with the enemy. We just had sex what’s the harm in that?”

“The harm? The implications are too numerous to count. The biggest issue is that your relationship.” She stressed the word as if it pained her to say it. “Could affect your ability to work with one another and thus compromise any future missions.”

Arizona reframed himself from smirking at her. She was too easy to misdirect when it came to conversations that he didn’t want to take part of. C.T hadn’t said anything to him when she met up with him later in the day and Arizona was all too happy to keep it that way.

“Read that in the manual on how to be a hard ass with no humor at all?” At her unimpressed look, he groaned. “I promise you that it won’t be a problem. We are both grown consenting adult with full knowledge of any ramifications that may or may not occur. Honestly you are working yourself up for no reason. What I want to talk about is that score board I saw after the mission. What is that all about anyway?”

“The score board is what helps determine who gets the first implant of an A.I. Right now it looks like York or North might be the first to get one.”

“It’s a great way to cause discord among the team, don’t you think that it’s a bad idea? If we are too worried about how we are evaluated during a mission it could cause us to make a mistake or hesitate when we really can’t afford to do so.”

“You’re right.”

Arizona just blinked up at the woman in surprise.

“Did you just tell me that I am right? Is the world going to end soon? Because if it is I need to know. There is just too many things that I haven’t done yet! So many people to have sex with!” He cried out clutching at his chest in mock horror.

“You’re a pig.” She said with a curl of her lips. “Be serious for once. All of us are competitive by nature as it is.”

“Some more than others.” Arizona said with a pointed look that she just ignored.

“To have something like that hanging over our heads is not something that I was too thrilled about. I held the same concerns and went to the Counselor about it.”

“Let me guess he said something along the lines of a bit of competition never hurt anyone.”

“Very nearly so.” Carolina said with a nod of her head.

“Why not go to the Director if the Counselor apparently isn’t going to do anything about it?”

“Because it was his idea in the first place.” Carolina said in irritation.

“Always leads back to the Director, doesn’t it?”

“Well he is the head of the company and of this project that he has invested a vast amount of money into.”

“Do you buy into the whole trying to preserve the human population and prevent future conflict?”

“Yes, I do.” She said without any pause.

“Thought so.” Arizona said with a tired sigh. “Look I don’t pretend that I know anything about any of his reasoning but it seems to me that he only is looking at the end results and not at how they happen. He doesn’t seem all that concerned with the rest of you or how it affects you long after this project has come to its completion. I don’t care much so long as I get paid. But don’t you find that just a little worrisome for you and the rest of your team?” He wanted her to desperately see what was in front of her but it was aggravating when she refused to do so.

“That’s just ridiculous! Of course he cares.” She trailed off with a frown on her face.

“You don’t sound so convincing there Carolina.”

“That’s because I shouldn’t have to try and convince you of anything. Look, you are new to the program and new to everyone here. I’m not going to deny that you have your uses and are very talented when it comes to combat.”

“Gee Carolina that almost sounded like a complement. Careful there I might just get a big ego with all that praise.” 

Again she just ignored his comments. “The rest of us don’t really know anything about you other than you’re not so convincing story about how you found our base of operations.”

“You think I’m a mole?” He said with a large grin on his face.

“Most people would instantly try to deny such accusations.”

“I thought that we have established by now that I’m not most people.”

Carolina took a deep breath and stared down at him as if to try and find something that she might have missed. Arizona just gave her a blank stare back at her. She wouldn’t find anything with him.

“Fine then. I’m not a mole of any sort I’m just looking forward to this big payout that I’m promised at the end of all this. Besides, who would I be a mole for?”

“Are you kidding me? Didn’t you wonder who it was that we stole from? Or even what it was that we stole in the first place?”

“Not so much. I know that it was important enough that the Director felt that he needed to take actions against whoever it was that we stole from. If I had to take a guess at what it was that C.T stole it would have to be something that would harm the project in some way. Why else would he go to such lengths to steal it? Which more than likely means that we have enemy factions that are working against us. Or at the very least a rival company that wants to beat us to the production line. This is a rather large step for human kind after all.”

“And that fact doesn’t concern you at all? That there are going to be others out there trying to halt our own project?”

“I’m better than them, have more experience it would seem than them, and I’m more organized than them if what happened last night was any indication. So no that doesn’t give me cause for concern. In fact, it makes me more confident that we have nothing really to worry about.”

“I just don’t understand you Arizona.”

“I’m a selfish bastard who is only in it for the money.” He said flippantly.

“I doubt that’s even remotely true.”

“Think what you want.” Arizona got up from the table and walked out the door.

“You’re hiding something and I plan to find out what it is!” She cried out after him.

Arizona gave her a crooked smile from over his shoulder. “Don’t you know? Everyone has something to hide, Carolina. It’s just a matter of what it is they are hiding and why.” He then left her after that.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`  
His comment left Carolina frowning still standing in the empty room mind going in a thousand different directions. She knew that if anyone were to glean any information from the man it just so happened to be his partner. From the way C.T followed the man and stayed with him last night meant she would be less inclined to help her.

“Damn it.”

“Hey, there you are.” Came York’s cheerful voice.

“Tell me, York, do you find anything odd with Arizona?”

“Odd how?” York said as he walked into the room.

“Well, it’s just that we know next to nothing about him other than his skills with any weapon his has put into his hands. I don't see that as a bad thing. He out shot North and he gave you a good fight.”

“Ok. So he’s a skilled fighter. He’s a mercenary he wouldn’t be good at what he did if he wasn’t. The Director signed him on so he can’t be all that bad.”

“I looked for any records about him.” She admitted softly.

“What did you find?”

“Nothing. There wasn’t a single trace of him in any known data base. No digital foot prints or records to be found.”

“That can’t be right. Maybe they were erased?”

“Even if that were the case something would still be there a blank spot so to speak. The fact that there isn’t even that is very troublesome. Another thing is his reactions or his speech pattern.”

“Like?”

“I would bet money that he was in special forces of some type. At the very least he has some military training.”

“So he has things to hid and people who are better at hiding his tracks than you are at finding them. Aren’t we all entitled to some secrets?”

“Not when it comes to the work that we do and the project we are a part of.” 

“Ok what do you want to do about it? Spy on him.” He said in a joking manner.

“Yes York that is exactly what I plan to do and you are going to help me.”

“Ah man do you really want to do this? You do know that a certain someone is due back from their assignment shouldn’t you be focused on her instead?”

Carolina clenched her jaw tightly and narrowed her eyes in anger. “As much as I want to show that prissy bitch that I’m better than she is that’s going to have to wait.”

“Wow you’re really serious about this aren’t you.” His eyes widened at that.

“The fact that I did some highly illegal hacking to find anything out on Arizona wasn’t your first clue?”

“What’s our plan?”

“We’ll have to talk to C.T first she will have some more insight on him. She’s spent the most time with him.”

“Oh sure. Let’s just go talk to the girl that Arizona trust to have his back and may or may not be starting a romantic relationship with. This won’t blow up in our face at all.” He said voicing her own prediction of how staler of an idea it was.

“York, shut up will you.”

“I reserve the right to say, ‘I told you so.’”


	8. Chapter eight

I reserve the right to say, ‘I told you so’  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
“C.T Whaaat’s uppp. Fancy meeting you here.” York said with a nervous laugh as he and Carolina walked into the cafeteria. 

C.T put her fork down and merely raised her eye brow at the two of them obviously well aware of what the two were up too.

“It’s in the middle of lunch time of course you knew that I would be here.”

“Real smooth dip shit.” Carolina said in aggravation. 

“Whatever it is no.” C.T said in a deadpanned voice.

“Ah come on C.T don’t be like that. You don’t even know what we are going to say.” York whined out.

“You’re going to ask me something that pertains to Arizona and I’m not going to betray his trust simply to sate your curiosity.”

“It’s not to simply to sate our curiosity, C.T.” We need to know more about him and know if he is a mole.”

“You have to admit his story is more than a little sketchy and he doesn’t even pretend to try to convince us that he isn’t lying.”

“Well I hate to be the one to bring you bad news, but he isn’t a mole and he doesn’t have any nefarious plot against all of us. He has proven himself countless times! What is it going to take before you feel as if you can trust him?” C.T said shoving her chair backwards and it made a clattering sound as she pushed off it, her face red with anger.

"As soon as he starts telling us the truth. Not these half bullshit answers! He is dangerous and he could very well have been sent here to kill the Director."

"He wasn't."

“How do you know!” Carolina said voice rising.

“The same way I know that North would never betray her sister. The same way that I know that you would never betray me.”

“C.T we didn’t mean any harm. We just want to know a little more about him is all.” York said rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly eyeing the two women next to him nervously.

“If you want to know so much about him you can damn well asking him yourself.” She snapped out.

“What’s the point? He’s just going to lie to us. We are just trying to look out for the team as a whole C.T.”

“No, you want a reason to run to the Director and tell him that he has made a mistake in allowing him on our team. You want to make him doubt ever letting Arizona onto this project.”

“He doesn’t see us as a team C.T. He always refers us and him separately never like we are all on the same team.”

“ Well, you haven't given him much of a chance now have you? Say that you go to the Director with these 'concerns' about him being a mole and he does agree with you what do you think he is going to do with Arizona, huh? It’s not as if this is an office job and the boss thinks that he doesn’t have what it takes so fires him. You’re reading too much into this.” C.T said her voice raising the madder she got.

“It’s not like the Director is going to kill him or anything.” She said scoffing at the idea.

“Are you so sure of that? Can you honestly tell me that the Director won't put him in some black off site where he is never going to be seen again? The Director is the one keeping secrets.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Carolina said.

“Just what I said.”

“Now look who is reading into things.”

“Hump well at least I have eyes and can see what’s right in front of me.” C.T said as she gave York a sideways glance at that.

“You’re so full of shit.” 

York turned his attention back onto Carolina and he knew that the next thing she was going to say was something that she would later regret. Worse yet was that he didn’t even time to stop her.

“Maybe you are just deluding yourself because you got laid. Lord knows no one else around here is lining up.”

C.T took a step back as if she had been hit and stared at Carolina shock and hurt evident on her face.

“Carolina.” York said eyes gowning wide as he looked at her. She didn’t take her own eyes away from C.T though. Unapologetic of her words. 

“Well, have anything to say? No rebuttal? No more denying that Arizona isn’t a mole?”

“No, I think you’ve just about said it all.” C.T said as she slowly walked away shoulders stiff and pace fast.

'Just what the hell is with all the women today?' York questioned to himself as he spied South making her way down the hall. She was looking for a fight. He'd seen that same look during training.

“And here I thought that I was the resident bitch.” South said as she stepped aside to let C.T pass her. “You’ve fucked up Carolina.” She stated as she picked up the fallen chair.

“I’m right.” She corrected.

“No, you let the fact that C.T might be finding something good and real other than this life we are leading into and all you have is your need to prove that you’re better than Tex. Which I’m starting to wonder if you are or not.” 

Carolina gave South a sharp look at her, her fist clenching in anger at her words. South was good at doing that, winding people up, pushing the right buttons.

“Going to try and belittle me or call me desperate as well? Or are you just going to punch me?” South said as she eyed the balled-up hand. “Because I’ve been itching for a fight.” 

“How about we dial it down a few notches.” York said hesitantly stepping in front of the two women.

“Look I know that you feel cheated due to the score board but taking you anger out on Carolina because she is in a higher ranking than you isn’t going to solve anything.” York said to South. “And Carolina, you need to apologize to C.T for what you said. Arizona might not be telling the whole truth and everyone here knows that he is hiding things from us but he came up with a solid plan that saved us and helped us to get away last night all in one piece. I do think that he needs to tell us more about him. But honestly, I’m not sure what would have happened last night if he hadn’t come up with his insane idea and you know it. Like it or not he is valuable to our team and the Director saw that when he first met the guy. Attacking C.T like that wasn’t what we had in mind or at least it wasn’t what I had in mind when we came to talk to her.” He said as he looked over at Carolina. The woman gave him a dark look but he saw the answer in her eyes. She hadn't meant to say those words and they both knew it.  


Both females looked at him with varying degrees of anger but he held his ground. Neither agreeing with him nor disagreeing. But there silence was telling all the same. Instead they both turned and walked there separate ways leaving him alone in the room. Once they were both gone York let out a sigh of relief.

“That was awfully brave of you.” Arizona drawled out as he leaned against the wall looking at York.

“Sulking in the dark now are you?” York grumbled out.

“No need to get mad at me because you thought it was a bright idea to get in between two angry women.”

“Yeah, well someone needed to intervene before blood was spilled and someone ended up dead. It would have probably been me. Then it would be all your fault.”

“Why would it be my fault. I’m not the one calling someone a slut by trying to find out information on someone. Besides C.T isn’t going to tell any of you anything that she may or may not know about me. Whatever she thinks she knows is so far from the truth that it wouldn’t matter what she told you anyway.”

“Who are you?” York said looking at the dreaded man.

“Just a mercenary who is getting real tired of all of the hang ups everyone here seems to have. There is a counselor for all of you for a reason.”

“I’m starting to think that you were never a mercenary. But there is some truth to what Carolina said. You don’t consider yourself as a part of our team. Hell you don’t even trust Main and the guy hasn’t even done anything to you. I think you just hate him on principle.” 

“Kind of hard to be a part of your super-secret club when everyone is second guessing everything I say or do.” Arizona said with a careless shrug. Saying nearly the same thing that C.T had said just a few minutes prior to Arizona making his own appearance.

“That may be true but trust is a two-way street. To get something you have to give something.” Had they really written him off before giving the man a chance? Was it worth it to trust Arizona? He, after all, keeps saying that he was just out looking for his payday.

“Wow, how very sagely of you.” He quipped out.

“Are you completely incapable of holding any type of conversation without insulting someone?”

“Probably not. Never really thought to try.” Arizona said with a smirk and a careless shrug.

“Come on give me something to work with Arizona.”

“You really want to know something about me?” Arizona said as he pushed away from the wall and stood in front of York. Irritation shinning in his brown eyes.

“Umm, yeah.”

“Everyone that I have ever cared for, ever came even remotely close to, has died. Some right in front of my eyes or in my arms even and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it. Worse yet it’s all because of me and whatever dumb ass decision that I planned for.” He all but growled out at York. “You want to know why I try to distance myself from the rest of you? It’s because all of you are going to die and you won’t even know what the hell it is that you will be dying for. So, tell me York, what the hell makes you think that I plan on getting close to any of you huh?” Arizona hissed out.

York wanted to take a step back from the advancing form that was Arizona. It struck him as odd when York looked into the other’s eyes. Even as upset as he clearly was, Arizona never once raised his voice unless it was to gain someone’s attention. He held himself tightly under control, even now when York could visibly see just how upset the other man was. So strong was his control on himself that it honestly impressed York. In fact York was certain that the man never let his guard down for anyone. Never let anyone see him other than the way that we wanted everyone to see him as.

“What makes you think we are all going to die?” York said.

Arizona stepped back from the man and his face instantly closed off. “Just a feeling I have.” He muttered out before he too left the room leaving York alone confused more than ever before.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
“Geez York, do you have a death wish?” Wash said with a low whistle as York finished his retelling. 

“Nah, I just like living on the edge is all.”

“You sure that’s it and not the fact that you are absolutely insane?” 

“Why does everyone keep asking me that?"

"Because of the stupid stunts that you pull."

"Always works out doesn't it."

"Yeah, only because you're completely insane. That's not living on the edge."

"One in the same if you ask me.” He said with a careless wave of his shot glass.

“It’s a good thing no one did, then is it?” North said with a frown on his face. “I thought doing all the dangerous stunts was supposed to be my thing.”

York, with all the wisdom of a grown man with a slight sense of self-preservation decided that it would be best to stay away from all the women for the remainder of the day. Dragging both York and Wash into his self-imposed exile. With the promise of alcohol of course. The three of them found themselves crowed up in South’s room sitting around a flimsy card table. A half a bottle of brandy between them.

“She may have gone about it all wrong, but Carolina does have a point.” North said knocking back the rest of his glass.

“Perhaps.” Wash said quietly.

“Alright man what is up with you?” North said exasperated. 

“What. Nothing. Why do you ask?” Wash said grabbing a hold of his own glass and downing it in one gulp before pouring himself another shot only to toss it back.

“Oh, I don’t know. How about the fact that you couldn’t shoot for shit today and Main thoroughly gave you the worst thrashing since basic during training?” North said in amusement. 

“So, I had an off day. We are all entitled to them every now and again.” He said with a sulk.

“I don’t know man you seem awfully defensive for someone who claims to only have an off day.”

“Oh, stuff it.” Wash growled out.

“What are you jealous that Arizona had sex with C.T? I didn’t know you were interest in C.T.” York asked.

“No, it’s nothing like that.” 

“Not in the way you think anyway, York.” North said with a gleeful smile.

“What the hell are you going on about?” York said.

“Wash here has a crush on a certain aqua armored man who has a deep dark origin story.” 

The other blinked several seconds before turning his eyes on his fellow teammate with wide eyes watching as the other poured yet another drink before slamming it back.

“I’ve no idea what the hell you are going on about. I don’t have a crush on anyone. Even if I did I sure as hell wouldn’t have a crush on that guy. Some of us have taste.” He grumbled out.

“Somehow I just don’t believe you.” York said now grinning like a loon at him.

“But I don’t.” He gestured with his hands widely. Nearly bashing North with his shot glass in the process.

“You know that we don’t care right.” North said ducking the man’s swinging arm.

“Pretty sure that C.T would.” He mumbled out.

“Nah. Far as I can tell they aren’t in that type of relationship.”

“I don’t know. Friends with benefits never ever work out without it getting messy.” York said as if trying to impart some important advice. Not nearly as effect as it would have been if he wasn't slightly drunk.

“How would you know? You’re too hung up on a certain female captain to ever get in any type of relationship like that.” North said.

“I have no idea what you are talking about.” York said grabbing a hold of the bottle and pouring himself a healthy dose mimicking Wash’s actions.

“The two of you are hopeless.” North said with a roll of his eyes.

After that the three of them fell silent all of them lost in thought until York finally broke it.

“I’m kinda fucked aren’t I.” He said miserably. “I mean what are the chances that I would ever have any luck getting Carolina to notice me. Other than her punching me in the face.

“Yeah well if you asked her at least she would give you a straight answer. I don’t think Arizona knows how to tell the truth.” Wash said brows wrinkled in thought.

“Think what he told you is true?” North said as he stared at York.

“You wouldn’t be asking me if you had been there, man. He had this look in his eyes North. That type of look isn't something you can just fake. No, his pain was real. I don’t know how to explain it really but it made me believe him. Oh!”

The other two gave a start at his sudden outburst. Wash, who had drank the most, nearly fell over in the process. 

“Oh what?” North said peering blearily at the other.

“I got a plan.”

“This should go over well.” Wash said dryly.

"No really it's a good plan!" York said with a wide triumphant grin on his face. 

"Simply for the sake of amusing you and your drunk ass, what is your plan?" North said as he poured himself another shot not looking up from his drink. 

"We break into the Counselor's office and get Arizona's phys evaluation. There has to be something in there that can give us some clues as to who the man is or what his motives are." 

"As far as your bad ideas goes this one isn't actually all that bad." Wash said as he eyed the standing man. 


End file.
